US Software Teams: Crush those doubts with these expert tips

Outsourcing your software development from your own US-based team to some strangers overseas can be a difficult sell to your staff, management, and even to yourself.

I want to show you how we can overcome the top three obstacles to outsourcing success. Look out for my tips based on expert insider knowledge and get your projects some super-charged performance!

Doubt is healthy

Doubt stops us from making reckless decisions, like buying that unaffordable car or getting that tattoo. But too much can freeze us into place and stop us from getting the success we need, so it’s important to assess if the doubts are reasonable.

Okay, first let’s get those doubts out in the open. Here are the top three reasons why your US software development company might resist hiring a team from overseas, even if you really need it.

“What if the quality of production is unacceptable?”

“They could take the money and run.”

“My internal team is going to push back on this.”

Now that we’ve said them out loud, dealing with each of them is much easier. I’ve put them into more formal language below.

1. Does low cost equal low quality?

This question is understandable, as we’ve all been taught from a young age that you get what you pay for. But in truth, many of the overseas teams are educated to an even higher degree than their western counterparts. In order to get a job in saturated markets like India, competition is fierce and only the best of the best get to the top.

Even with all this competition, cost of living expenses in India are less than half that in an average US city, so, you can get great talent at great prices, and many of these engineers have trained or worked in the USA for a time, so their English skills and knowledge of your market can be much higher than you’d expect.

Expert Tip: Even knowing all of the above, in addition, there are plenty of ways of assessing the quality of work before you part with one red cent. In fact, I’ve written a book about it.

2. What guarantees do you have that they will do the work?

The outsourcing scene has been around for a long time, so there are plenty of ways of assessing vendor reputation. Some of these include the depth of information they return in your RFP (Request for Proposal), the quality of clients they have worked with in the past, the strength of the guarantees they offer, and the robustness your own legal protection documents.

Expert Tip: Companies that have been vetted by an accountable third party can help you find the right team.

3. Will there be team synergy?

There is always a fear that internal team members will feel like they’re being replaced by cheap labour. The best way to deal with these fears is to make sure that the offshore workers feel like part of your team with communication, social interactions, and an integrated team.

Expert Tip: Using outsourced talent to enhance your current skill set is a great way to get the best of both worlds.